February 23, 2012

Wholesome, comforting, and just plain lovely.As much as I love to fiddle with recipes and fill them with interesting, new ingredients, every once and a while it feels so great to enjoy something simple. Filled to the brim with healthy, gorgeous vegetables, this Japanese dish is as delicious as its name is long.

After simmering up a yummy broth and letting it bubble away with sweet potatoes and cabbage, we serve it over toothsome soba noodles tossed with nutty sesame oil.These noodles are so delightful that they even make me use pretentious foodie terms like “toothsome.”Combined with spinach for an even bigger dose of colorful vitamins and everything is beautiful.All together, the noodles, veggies, and broth mix and marry to create an amazingly simple and delicious meal.Soba Noodles in Broth with Sweet Potato, Cabbage, and SpinachRecipe adapted from The New York TimesPrintable Recipe6 cups kombu dashi, chicken stock, or vegetable stock2 tablespoons soy sauce1 1/2 tablespoons mirinpinch chili flakessalt, to taste6 ounces soba noodles, cooked and tossed with 1 tablespoon sesame oil1 large sweet potato, peeled, halved, and sliced about 1/4-inch thick2 cups shredded cabbage4 ounces baby spinach, coarsely shredded1 green onion, divided, choppedIn a large pot, combine the stock, soy sauce, mirin, and chili flakes over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and taste, adding salt if necessary. Add sweet potatoes, cabbage, and the white parts of the green onion, cooking for 15 minutes until the vegetables are tender.If the noodles have been refrigerated, warm them by placing them in a strainer and dipping it in the simmering soup. Distribute the noodles between four soup bowls. Add the spinach to the soup and turn off the heat. Cover the pot and let sit for 3 minutes. Ladle the soup equally into the four bowls. Sprinkle with the chopped green parts of green onion and serve.